Robert Portis, Author at The Fight City - Page 2 of 9The Fight City

Robert Portis

Browsing All Posts By Robert Portis

The Top Twelve 2
Top 12 All-Time Greatest One Punch KOs

Few things in all of sports are as electrifying as the one punch knockout and these are the most consequential and stunning of them all. To make the ...
On November 2, 2020 / By Robert Portis
Boxiana 0
Oct. 27, 1903: Johnson vs McVea II

On February 5th of 1903, Jack Johnson outpointed “Denver” Ed Martin to win what was referred to at that time as the “Black” or “Colored” heavyweight championship of ...
On October 27, 2020 / By Robert Portis
Features 2
Hawk Time Forever

Were he still with us, Aaron Pryor would be 65-years-old today. Gone too soon, and taken in the same year that saw the passing of Muhammad Ali, “The ...
On October 20, 2020 / By Robert Portis
Boxiana 4
Oct. 18, 1991: Mercer vs Morrison

Most boxing fans are familiar with the ancient chestnut, “As the heavyweights go, so goes boxing,” and it would be difficult to argue that the old saw bears ...
On October 18, 2020 / By Robert Portis
Boxiana 0
Oct. 14, 1949: Gavilan vs Jack

It was the classic clash of the old king vs the future king when the once-great Beau Jack met Kid Gavilan in Chicago Stadium in a ten round, non-title ...
On October 14, 2020 / By Robert Portis
Boxiana 0
Oct. 10, 1962: Harada vs Kingpetch

Pone Kingpetch, Thailand’s first world champion, had won the flyweight crown from Pascual Pérez, an impressive achievement considering the Argentinian is without a doubt one of the finest ...
On October 10, 2020 / By Robert Portis
Boxiana 0
Oct. 5, 1936: Canzoneri vs McLarnin II

Tony Canzoneri vs Jimmy McLarnin. Two of the very best from one of boxing’s greatest decades, the 1930’s, the Depression years, the glorious time of Kid Chocolate, Barney ...
On October 5, 2020 / By Robert Portis
Fight Reports 0
Fight Report: Charlo vs Derevyanchenko

“You can’t always get what you want,” goes the old saw, “but if you try sometimes, you get what you need.” And despite all the frustrations and disappointments ...
On September 27, 2020 / By Robert Portis
Boxiana 0
Sept. 12, 1951: Robinson vs Turpin

The first Robinson vs Turpin battle took place in London, England just two months before the second, and it will forever stand as one of the greatest upsets ...
On September 12, 2020 / By Robert Portis
Boxiana 0
Sept. 6, 1997: Zaragoza vs Morales

It was the classic confrontation: age and experience vs youth and raw talent. Southpaw Daniel Zaragoza was the grizzled veteran, a survivor of 65 professional battles and some 21 ...
On September 6, 2020 / By Robert Portis
Boxiana 0
Sept. 3, 1936: Ambers vs Canzoneri

Tony Canzoneri was already a lock for the Hall of Fame, not to mention an all-time great lightweight when he entered Madison Square Garden in May of 1935 ...
On September 3, 2020 / By Robert Portis
Boxiana 2
Aug. 17, 1938: Armstrong vs Ambers I

There is only one way to become a truly great boxer and that is to compete against other truly great boxers. Back in the day, if a fighter ...
On August 17, 2020 / By Robert Portis
Boxiana 0
Aug. 15, 1911: Langford vs O’Brien

It’s a sad tale, but a classic one, told many times in boxing: the proud, old king saddles up for one last battle against a young warrior just ...
On August 15, 2020 / By Robert Portis
Boxiana 0
Aug. 9, 1980: Palma vs Randolph

In 1976, a group of young athletes journeyed to Montreal to fight for their country. There were no great expectations for the men who populated the American Olympic ...
On August 9, 2020 / By Robert Portis
Boxiana 0
Fight City Legends: The Georgia Deacon

He was only thirty-two when he left this world but if, as the old saw goes, only the good die young, then Tiger Flowers could never have escaped ...
On August 5, 2020 / By Robert Portis
Boxiana 0
Aug. 4, 1947: Williams vs Montgomery

Ike Williams and Bob Montgomery made no secret of the fact that they disliked one another and their animosity made for a pair of brutal clashes in Philadelphia, ...
On August 4, 2020 / By Robert Portis
Boxiana 0
July 31, 1908: Ketchel vs Kelly

Alas, for so many of boxing’s truly great champions, precious little or no film exists of their exploits, but despite this, we possess solid evidence of their splendid ...
On July 31, 2020 / By Robert Portis
Boxiana 1
July 25, 1902: Jeffries vs Fitzsimmons II

It is difficult to say how heavyweight champion James J. Jeffries would have matched up against more contemporary boxers, but there’s no doubt he was an extraordinary fighter. ...
On July 25, 2020 / By Robert Portis
Boxiana 0
July 16, 1947: Zale vs Graziano II

In 1945 Rocky Graziano stood at the precipice of ruin. Just 26-years-old, with a record of 35-6-5, he had lost two matches in a row, two high profile defeats ...
On July 16, 2020 / By Robert Portis
The Top Twelve 0
Top 12 All-Time Greatest Catchers

On this day way back in 1922, the man they would come to call “The Bronx Bull” was born. Jake LaMotta would go on to not only become ...
On July 10, 2020 / By Robert Portis
Boxiana 2
July 9, 1989: Rosario vs Jones

When we compare and rank boxers of the past, something all serious fight fans love to do, one of the key criteria is longevity. This has less to ...
On July 9, 2020 / By Robert Portis
Boxiana 0
July 7, 1985: Chavez-Mayweather I

It’s 1985 and everyone south of the border already knows who the next great Mexican boxer will be. The only problem is pretty much no one north of ...
On July 7, 2020 / By Robert Portis
Boxiana 1
July 6, 1979: Gonzalez vs Oguma IV

The career of Betulio Gonzalez, which should be enshrined in the Hall of Fame but for reasons unknown is not, featured numerous clashes with various champions, but was ...
On July 6, 2020 / By Robert Portis
Boxiana 1
June 29, 1942: Charles vs Burley II

No one knowledgeable about the long history of prizefighting doubts the standing of Charley Burley. The man was so good even Sugar Ray Robinson avoided him. And no ...
On June 29, 2020 / By Robert Portis
Boxiana 0
Fight City Legends: Little Chocolate

The question is posed: who was the first black man to win a world boxing championship? And here are the likely replies: Jack Johnson? Joe Gans? While incorrect, these ...
On June 27, 2020 / By Robert Portis
Boxiana 1
June 22, 1938: Louis-Schmeling II

Former world champion Max Schmeling was a solid 10-to-1 underdog when he faced rising contender and awesome knockout artist Joe Louis in a major heavyweight showdown in June ...
On June 22, 2020 / By Robert Portis
Boxiana 6
June 18, 1941: Louis vs Conn I

It is 1941 and while some say death and taxes are the only sure things in life, American sports fans know different. There exists a third certainty: Joe Louis ...
On June 18, 2020 / By Robert Portis
Boxiana 11
June 12, 1989: Hearns vs Leonard II

Their first meeting in 1981, one of the biggest fights in boxing history, was called “The Showdown,” an appellation which made sense given that each held one of ...
On June 12, 2020 / By Robert Portis
Boxiana 2
Fight City Legends: The Smoke City Wildcat

They called them the Roaring Twenties, that crazy decade following World War I when the economy boomed, “speakeasies” opened on every other corner, the “flappers” started showing a ...
On June 6, 2020 / By Robert Portis
Boxiana 0
May 25, 1965: Ali vs Liston II

I wrote about this famous and most scandalous of duels for an earlier post on this site, our list of the most controversial fights in boxing history. I ...
On May 25, 2020 / By Robert Portis

The Fight City

Montreal is The Fight City. Known in years past as "Sin City" and "Babylon on the St. Lawrence", it saw more than its share of ring legends over the decades. A metropolis where hundreds of young warriors train and battle each day in its many gyms, it is where Archie Moore, Sugar Ray Leonard, Roberto Duran and Bernard Hopkins all found greatness. It is a city of fights and fighters, of hockey and heroes, of broken dreams and immortal glory, a city unlike any other. Montreal is The Fight City.

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